The Winds of Westeros

The Stark sisters are BACK!

Both of them have been through some pretty traumatizing situations.

They saw their father beheaded. They found out that their mother had been killed at the Red Wedding.

Sansa became a political hostage of sorts; to be bought and sold to the highest bidder. Of course, with her ancient House name and her beauty, the Lannisters were aiming to use that for themselves. Until she was spirited away by Petyr Balesh, who sold her to the Boltons. And we all know the horror Sansa had experienced, being married to Ramsay Bolton. She had to cope somehow and in that type of situation, it's no wonder that Post Traumatic Stress Disorder can grab a hold of a person. Luckily for her, she was able to escape with Theon and head north to the Wall.

Arya, on the other hand, has used her survival skills to get into the House of Black and White. You could say that she learned from the best, as Jaqen was a strict teacher. Eventually, she had to outsmart, outwit and outdo the Waif. And we ALL cheered when Arya when the Waif got her just desserts!

The Stark sisters have been through so much and have had to do things that young noblewomen normally wouldn't have to do but hopefully, they will reunite at Winterfell.

After all, Jon and Sansa have now reunited and are making preparations to take down the Boltons.

HOUSE STARK FOREVER!!!

There's nothing more to say.

The Door broke my heart. Broke millions of fans' heart - shattering them into thousands of pieces.

RIP Sweet Gentle Giant.


You truly were a good soul.

Summer, my heart was so tightly constricted. You fought bravely. You fought justly. May you roam in the night sky with your brothers Grey Wind, Shaggy Dog and sister Lady.

F YOU David and Dan.

SQUEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE

Stark Sibling Reunion in da house!!

Marg and the High Sparrow talking.

Sansa, Marg and Yara being Boss ASS BITCHES.

Brothers gearing up for way.

Scumbag Baelish lying as per usual.

Robyn Arryn is an idiot.

Dany is burning down the house. LITERALLY.

Tormund and Brienne NEED TO HAPPEN.

Game of Thrones fans, be sure to check out artist Robert Ball's "A Beautiful Death" on Tumblr.

Every season, he has created phenomenal artwork and does a poster for ever episode.

Check them out!

http://beautifuldeath.com/

ANOTHER AMAZING EPISODE.

Now this is more like it! Yes, I was disappointed with the season premiere, but I have to say that the second and third episodes have really picked up the pace.

Which is great because there is so much turmoil going on in King's Landing at the moment, that I really can't wait to see the outcome.

Anyone else feel a smug sense of satisfaction when Lady Olenna throws some MAD SHADE towards Cersei? Oh MY GOD. They don't call her the "Queen of Thorns" for nothing!! Uncle Kevan Lannister can barely conceal his contempt for his niece. Well, I kind of don't blame him.

Margaery and Loras are still in a pickle. Theon is slowly shedding his Reek persona and starting to remember what it was like to be Theon Greyjoy, before he made so many mistakes. I think going through all that trauma has really made him see the light; let's hope that Theon will remember to be true to himself and remember that his adopted sister Sansa is alive and well. And Dany is just lingering around in Vaes Dothrak, with the other widowed Khaleesi's. We know she is not suited to that life, but she is just biding her time.

As for Arya Stark, or as she is now known as, No One, I REALLY want to see her mad ninja Rocky Balboa Jedi assassin skills come in handy. Like, as in NOW. I want her to beat the Waif so bad that the Waif will NEVER lay a hand on her again.

And can we just say YOUNG NED, tho?! Holy ^%$##@!!!!! These flashbacks are frickin' awesome. D & D should have incorporated them starting in season 3. Let's be honest, they have more than enough material that they could've started years ago. Oh well. I suppose as a massive fan, I will just have to be content with what is presented. And how about that Ser Arthur Dayne? And that fight sequence? And Howland Reed.....that dude is LOYAL.

And OF COURSE.......Ser Davos and Melisandre find Jon has risen from the DEAD. BOOM MF's!

Oh YEAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!

Where the season premiere lacked, Episode Two - "Home" REALLY PICKED UP THE PACE!!!

Nice to see some amazing flashback sequences. Let's hope that this season is going to be forgiving for the Starks because I am sick and tired of them being abused.

They have been tortured, abused and bullied, ripped assunder and have had some very trying moments.

I for one, was extremely pleased with this episode. The pacing was fast; which is the way Game of Thrones SHOULD roll.

I can't stand the Dorne plot; last week's murder of Prince Doran, Prince Trystane and Aero Hotah was a joke. Let's hope that those awful Sand Snakes get their comeuppance.

THE SEASON PREMIERE AIRED TONIGHT.

How did you feel about it? To be completely honest, I felt it lacked a lot of "oomph."

Here's hoping Episode 2 picks up the slack!

YES

THIS MONTH HAS ARRIVED

SO HAVE MORE TRAILERS

I CAN'T TAKE THE HYPEEEEEE!!!

Actually, I can. This is AWESOME!!!!!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EI0ib1NErqg

YES.

FIRST TRAILER DROPPED THIS MONTH AND IT IS AWESOME.

boooooooooyeahhhhhhhh

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dKrhgVFTI6I

YESSSSSSS

Here's another one!!!!!!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qBPnMru-sb0

Millions of fans are rejoicing!! Millions of fans are watching the trailer over and over again, in case they missed something important the first time around!

Who could blame them? I certainly don't!!!!!

Ooops.....

According to a few press junkets and rumours.....Ian McShae may have accidentally let something out of the bag. A certain character, who we all thought was dead....will be making an appearance. And he said in an interview, "It's either Jon Snow or The Hound. It's not the former, it's the latter." BOOM!!!!

CLEGANE BOWL HYPE TRAIN!!!!! GET ON BOARD!!!!

Sophie Turner revealed at the Oscars that her character is still very much alive in Season 6, which we are all thankful for because if one more Stark dies, I am going to seriously lose my %#@^&&!!!!!

And HBO will NOT be releasing any episodes to the press for prior viewing, in an attempt to squash down the extreme pirating that has been going on.

Listen, I wouldn't be upset if the first 4 episodes leaked like last year.

YES. I said that. Do what you will with that. 

We're a month closer. That's what I'm talking about! Double digits in our countdown. And I'm all for that. I was a bit busy with work, hence why my blogging has been light as of that past few months.

Lots of speculation and HBO released a trailer.....very dark, very ominous and it's located in the House of Black and White. What does this mean? Why do we hear the dead speaking? Is this to provoke us? To bring back those suppressed feelings of rage and sorrow at seeing some of the best people die?!

Except Joffrey. I hated him and was thrilled to see him choke to death.

We're still patiently waiting for a trailer TRAILER, if you know what I mean. It's simply not ENOUGH for us to get a snippet of faces on the wall inside the House of Black and White.

Then again, fans have been freaking out over this. Why, you ask?! Well, duh. When a man or woman is given the "Gift" from someone inside the House of Black and White, then that means they're dead and gone.

Or are they........??

I had the opportunity to watch a production of "Gaslight" at the Ed Mirvish theatre downtown Toronto, with my husband.

I got us really good seats. Why is this being posted on my Winds of Westeros blog? Well, for those of you who have PBS, they've been advertising the production in Toronto the past two months now and guess who stars in it: Owen Teale (Ser Aliser Thorne) and Ian McElhanney (Barristan Selmy).

It was a fantastic production and our seats were really good. I kept saying to my husband that I was fully prepared to bribe the seating personnel for autographs. Sigh. I didn't end up doing so but I enjoyed watching the two actors on screen.

This is as close to a Game of Thrones actor as I'm gonna get.

It's going to be a loooooooooong wait for us fans!

We're now into the month of January and there's been little tidbits of information here and there.

The biggest things going on in many fan thread sites is the debate of whether Jon Snow is dead, whether or not we'll see the return of Lady Stoneheart (which to be perfectly honest, she SHOULD make an appearance but after Season 5's lack lustre episodes....yeah I'm talking about you David & Dan)....I have little faith in that department AND of course, there's been a few sightings of actor Rory McCann in Belfast.

I'm stoked to see what Ian McShae will be doing....although my feeling is that he will be portraying Septon Meribald.

A lass can hope!

Could it be possible that additional flashbacks are taking place in Season 6?!

Ser Arthur Dayne, the Sword of the Morning???

Bran having visions - his eyes going white and flashbacks to his siblings and their respective fates?!

Jon!!! Sansa!! Arya!!! WTF is happening to all the beloved Starks?

I hate you Ramsay!! And as for Cersei, I pray to the old Gods and the new that she gets what's coming to her!!! BIG TIME!!!

I heard a little birdie say that Margaery is released by the Faith Militant....has she gone over to their side or is it a ruse to survive?!

Can't wait to see Tyrion, Jaqen, Arya, Bran, Jon and all the awesome flashbacks in April!

They don't call it a teaser trailer for nothing!

Okay, seriously. With Twitter, Instagram and Facebook, pics of sets and actors/actresses can be uploaded in seconds.

So, if anyone thinks that Jon Snow is still dead, well, you might want to check out any Game of Thrones fan website.

In other news, now that the filming is taking place in Spain, Ireland and parts of Croatia and Macedonia, fans are scrambling for pictures of costumes, sets and which actors and actresses are on location.

Lots of buzz about certain storylines (Jaime and the Tyrells) and a certain dead character coming back to life (Lady Stoneheart). I wouldn't mind if LSH made an appearance.

Confirmed character come back is the Hound. Rory McCann has been spotted way too many times in Ireland for it to be a coincidence. Lots of friends and family members keep asking me what's going to happen in Season 6. This is the first time that I can honestly say, "I don't know."

Makes me feel like Jon Snow. Because in truth, the 6th book isn't out yet; we only have posted chapters from GRRM's blog to by and massive fan speculation.

I know nothing.

Folks, I am NOT A PATIENT person, especially when it comes to anything news related about Game of Thrones.

You can just imagine my dread and sheer frustration in having to read that Game of Thrones will not be airing until end of April....or worse, the beginning of May.

It seems with the new series Vinyl hitting the television in February, it will end up bumping the premiere of Season Six.

As if winter isn't already long enough. Yeah, I am TICKED about this.

You know, the good folks over at HBO could have Vinyl debut in January. There are seven days in a week. Instead of having it on a Sunday night, why not make it for a Monday or a Friday evening? It would break up the monotany of the week and give fans something else to look forward on a different night of the week.

Of course, this makes sense, so why the hell would they bother doing so? And yes, as a Game of Thrones fan, I am disgruntled and will toss out any suggestion to serve my selfish purposes. Well, too bad, it's my blog and I don't care if I come across being selfish in this regard.

I think a few million fans would agree with me.

Breaking news: Edmure Tully, the beleaguered son in law of Walder Frey and the Blackfish, Brendan Tully, are set to return for Season Six.

This is very exciting, as it heavily hints at the Riverrun storyline being included.

Lots of fan threads and speculation about Jaime and Ser Bronn venturing into Tully territory is very exciting, indeed! I'm glad at this particular development, because we all know that the show is now venturing off course, as book six is not yet published.

Are you looking forward to two good guys returning to Westeros? I am!

With so many Kit Harrington sightings in Belfast and on current production sets, the question remains: is Jon Snow dead or alive?

Spoilers below.....you've been warned.

If you go to Westeros.org or Watchers on the Wall, let's just say that there's plenty of photos to suggest that *maybe* Jon is going to be present in Season 6.

Here's hoping!!!!

Okay, so now Richard E Grant has been cast in Season 6. This is very interesting, indeed. He's had some pretty eclectic roles in movies and television. I wonder who's he's going to portray?

My husband is a huge fan of the Danish series, Borgen. You can imagine his delight at reading that Danish actor Pilou Asbaek has been cast as Euron Greyjoy. 

But what really got my attention is who else was cast.....and for their specific role!! If you've been watching Dowtown Abbey (I have become a fan in the past few years), then you'll definitely remember a certain stern patriarch, Lord Cinderby.

OMG. That actor is perfect for the role of Samwell Tarly's father, Randyll. James Faulkner will be playing the notoriously rigid and cold Tarly patriarch. Boy, do I ever feel for Same now! His dad was cold as ice and I have to say that they cast the actor perfectly for the role. Kudos!

How fortuitous......the Emmy's just happened to fall on GRRM's birthday (September 20).

And what a birthday present he got! Game of Thrones won in several areas, most notably being Peter Dinklage winning his second Emmy award.

He is awesome, his wit razor sharp and his political savvy a blessing. No wonder why Peter Dinklage won the Emmy - Tyrion Lannister is not only a fan favourite, but every time fans are fortunate enough to see Tyrion on screen, we know something interesting, dynamic or shocking is about to happen.

Happy birthday, GRRM. So, um....as a birthday present for your fans....any chance that The Winds of Winter will be coming out winter of 2016??

YESSSS

Leaked photos and footage of what's going to go DOWN in King's Landing, especially with Margaery, the Faith Militant and Jaime!!!

I love the folks over at Watchers on the Wall, because they get all the awesome information ahead of time. And I love them all the more for it.

Check out Daddy Tyrell's feather plume. It's so fabulous! News like this makes me happy because it's September, Winter is Coming and the days are passing by. Not that I'm wishing time away or anything like that, but I can handle Season Six being less than 7 months away.

This footage and seeing Jaime.....OMG does this mean what I think it does?!

And is Grandma Olenna coming back to lay the smack down on that evil witch, Cersei? OH I SURE HOPE SOOOO!!!

More Game of Thrones Funko Pop figures have been ordered.

Yes. I know. I already have 24 in my collection.

But.....but....I just want to order a "few more".....as in 8. LOL

I am STILL WAITING for my Jaqen H'gar Funko doll!!!!

Can I get an amen and hallelujah?! OH YEAH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Tower of Joy has officially been confirmed!! Flashbacks have also been confirmed, as a young actor has been cast to portray Eddard Stark when he was a teenager!

Could this mean that us rabid fans will FINALLY be able to solve a long awaited theory......L + R = J?!?!

Super stoked to know that other young actors have also been cast. This could mean that we get to see a young Robert Baratheon, perhaps Ser Arthur Dayne, Benjen and Brandon Stark!!!

Yes!!! Excellent news, indeed!!

Excitng news! Ian McShane and Max Von Sydow have both been cast for Season 6!!!

This is amazing news! Now, who do you think they're going to portray? My money's on Ian portraying Randyll Tarly! As for Max Von Sydow, perhaps a Maester or old patriarch of an ancient House, perhaps??